Search form

Kirkland Pathfinder Ayla is Québec’s first Discovery Girl!

You are here

It was the experience of a lifetime! Ayla Shanks, a member of the 1st Kirkland Pathfinders, was chosen to attend a leadership summit in California last August hosted by Discovery Girls magazine. It’s a publication aimed at tweens that covers issues that matter to young girls, promoting healthy self-esteem, community engagement and the development of leadership skills. Sound familiar? Indeed, Ayla quoted the Girl Guide promise in her application as it deeply reflects her values and aspirations.

One of four Canadian girls selected (amongst thousands of applicants from across North America!), Ayla is the first ‘Discovery Girl’ to hail from Quebec. The 36 participants took part in brainstorming activities and workshops, with the sessions to be featured in a number of upcoming issues in 2015 and 2016. Ayla and her contributions appear in the December/January issue, out now.

Pathfinder Guider Pam Godfrey tells us Ayla’s a bubbly and friendly addition to their unit. (She’s been involved in Guiding since Brownies.) In the new year, she’ll be sharing her experiences with the group and talking about the Kindness Revolution – a Discovery Girls campaign to show girls how kindness has the power to change the world.

Ayla’s an avid writer and features her musings on her personal blog. She hopes one day to be a published author. In the meantime, she attends Royal West Academy secondary school as a first year student.